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NAACP head: Stop federal aid to fight police brutality
August 24, 1997
Web posted at: 9:59 p.m. EDT (0159 GMT)WASHINGTON (CNN) -- NAACP President Kweisi Mfume says not enough is being done to combat police brutality across the country.
And in a Sunday interview on CNN's "Late Edition with Frank Sesno," Mfume singled out New York City's police department, which has been rocked in recent weeks by brutality charges stemming from an attack in which a Haitian suspect was allegedly sodomized with a toilet plunger.
"We've got to be just as vigilant at rooting out brutal, inhumane acts [of police brutality] as we are concerned about arresting a 15-year-old kid who may be washing windows at an intersection," Mfume said.
That comment was a reference to New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani's tough policy of "zero tolerance" on aggressive panhandling and other petty offenses.
Mfume offered one possible way to curb police brutality, a solution he wants the Clinton administration to act on:
"We need to start to send a clear message that we will withhold federal dollars to police departments around the country where there is an incidence of these cases taking place, or where there are major unresolved cases," he said.
"If we don't have some kind of a big stick to hold over the heads of police departments, they're going to continue to allow [police brutality] to take place."
Related stories:
- Haitians, demanding justice, rally in New York - August 23, 1997
- Justice Department investigating New York precinct - August 19, 1997
- 2 more New York policemen charged in brutality case - August 18, 1997
- Thousands gather to protest against NYC police August 16, 1997
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